Thursday, November 21, 2013

2 Corinthians 9:11You will be made richin every way so that you can be generouson every occasion, and through us your generosity will result
in thanksgiving to God.

For the last eight
years, I have taught a special series of Sunday School classes during each
Sunday in November called ‘The Faith of Our Presidents.’ I hope to finish the
series in three years’ time, after having covered every President that the
United States has ever had.

I usually start each
class with an introduction about the life and times of the President chosen for
that day. After a brief history lesson, the class looks at two important
documents in the lives of each President: their Inaugural speeches and their
annual Thanksgiving Proclamations. References to God are found in almost all of
them, which surprised me at first, given the current emphasis on the Separation
of Church and State in this country.

The Thanksgiving Proclamations
are wonderful and normally full of hopes and visions, blessings and
thanksgivings for the year in which they were written. If you've never read any
of them, then you’ll be pleased to know that you can find all of them online at
the following link:

Most
of the Proclamations encourage the people of the United States to make some
special time to be with God on Thanksgiving Day, and applaud Him for the divine
blessings He has given to our land. Many of statements also emphasize what Paul
was writing in his letter to the Corinthians long ago: that we should not only
give thanks to God for our blessings, but also be generous with our resources
so that more people can also thank God. It’s a beautiful thought and one that
Christians everywhere, in the US and across the entire globe, should constantly
be practicing.

Questions for personal reflection

Of what am I
thankful to God? How have I shared my grateful blessing with others?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are the Giver of all
our blessings and the Receiver of all our praise. Without You, our lives would
be empty, meaningless, and futile. With You, we have an abundance of Life for
which we are truly thankful. Help us to positively and cheerfully share what we
have received from You, in order that others may also thank and praise Your Name.
Amen.

John Stuart is
the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would
like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to traqair@aol.com.